The Abbey at Inverness - Birmingham, Alabama

Tabitha R.

My stay at The Abbey at Inverness was a long dreadful experience! First off, the off staff were very rude all except Ms. Melissa who is the assistant manager. The office staff wouldn’t even speak to me when I would walk in until after I reported them when I was sent a email to rate their services. Moving on to the condition of the 1 bedroom apartment I stayed in. The apartment was infested with roaches. I called weekly for pest control and they would leave a card showing that they came. I continued to see the bugs, so I ordered my own professional grade bug spray. The 2 dumpsters are always overflowing with trash. This lead to people leaving lots of trash on the ground in front of the dumpster. The geese would pick at the bags which would cause trash to be everywhere. Next, the apartment has little to no insulation. For the winter months I froze my butt off in my downstairs bedroom. The sliding door for both patio doors were not sealed so air was always coming through. This caused a very expensive power bill for 3 months. When I asked for them about installing for weather stripping the maintenance guys left a report saying they completed it but there was no new weather stripping on any doors. Next. The floors were freezing cold because again lack of insulation. The upstairs bathroom has missing boards and you can see light from outside so I’m sure that why that bathroom is cold. In order for me to be able to stay in my bedroom without getting sick was to buy a space heater and put a blanket to keep the air in that room. I didn’t appreciate my living conditions for the amount of money I was paying plus at $300 dollars power bill for each month the winter. The last complaint was my apartment had a loud odor from old toilets, no matter how much expensive cleaning products I used it still smelt bad.

P.S, my refrigerator leaked for about 3 months before they finally replaced it. My dishwasher had rust at the bottom.

I would not recommend anyone to move here.

Robert C.

I’ve only been here a couple of weeks but so far I’m extremely happy. The leasing part of the process was quick and easy and the two minor repairs I encountered were taken care of quickly. Looking forward to the coming months and enjoying the amenities and the complex

Nicole T.

Long overdue review, but I lived at this apartment complex from June 2022-June 2023.

- The biggest issue was the bugs. I would quite literally classify the amount of roaches I saw as an infestation. From my very first night in the apartment, the moment I brought food out the roaches showed up. And by that I mean I saw at least 10-15 roaches in one night (I can only imagine the ones I didn't see). I took all the precautions I could think of: put all open food in plastic bags, meticulously cleaned after every meal, requested pest control, etc. The provided pest control was absolutely no help. I had to resort to buying my own roach traps and spraying the apartment myself. Keep in mind that roaches weren't the only bugs coming in - just the most problematic. I understand that there were trees around my unit, but that does not justify or explain the amount of roaches that kept getting in.

- The second biggest issue was slow and/or poor maintenance. I let the apartment managers know in July that the front door and balcony door leaked when it rained (put in emergency work order & called the office). No one came to look at this until October. I had to put out pots and pans to collect water any time it stormed. I also put in a work order the week I moved in about a broken window screen. Someone came fairly quickly to "fix" it, but after looking at it they said they didn't have the correct screen size and had to order it. No one ever came back to fix the screen, and they somehow made it to where the actual window wouldn't close properly (they didn't tell me they did this, I found out after they left).

- The apartment has little to no insulation. My heating and cooling bills for my 600 sqft 1-bedroom apartment was as much as I paid for a townhouse elsewhere. I understand that rates are different in different areas of the state, but in the height of summer and winter the heating and cooling unit would never shut off even though it was set at 74 in the summer and 67/68 in winter. I had to wear a winter jacket and hat indoors during the winter to stay warm.

-The apartment smelled like cigarette smoke the entire time I lived there. No matter how many times I cleaned or how many air fresheners I used. The smell got into all my clothes and furniture.

Don't be fooled into falling in love with this complex when viewing it for the first time. The well-curated showroom and cute geese and ducks are not worth the headache that is living at this complex.

Kristen H.

Our move-in experience was incredibly disappointing. Michelle tossed our keys at us with no greeting, no smile—nothing. We weren’t even given a basic welcome bag, which felt especially disrespectful after paying over $2,000 just to move in. Communication was unclear, fees were inconsistent, and questions were met with attitude.

Seeing other reviews that mention similar issues—including infestations—makes me nervous, but also reassures me that our experience wasn’t isolated. With a 3.8 rating, I really hope the team starts treating all residents with basic respect and hospitality.

Rujiraphorn R.

Sherrye is one of the best property manager I have ever had. She cares for her tenants and offer to help out even though she doesn’t need to do it.

Talking about the apartment itself, I don’t have any issues so far. There could be some maintenance issues once in a while but they always promptly take care of it.

Kara R.

I have lived here for 6 months and this is everything that I wish I knew before signing a lease:
1. BUGS: You will have bugs. No matter how clean you are, you will have bugs. Spiders, roaches, etc. you will have them. We got a dehumidifier to try and help with the wetness of our townhome (to try and control the bugs) and it helped with the musty smell but not the bugs.

2. AMENITY FEE: $115 seems great for wifi, pest control, and pool access. Well, you have to request pest control to come. At first that bothered me, but I got over it. Now, when pest control does come they aren't even in the place for 2 minutes so I am not sure what they spray or do but I am not sure how they do it in 2 minutes. It has never seemed to help with the bugs either.
1/2 of the pools are nice. But, the nice one was closed for half of this summer and when it was open, large groups of people with their friends and family members crowded the pool so it was not enjoyable. It seems like the outside guest count wasn't really monitored by the mangers.
In reality, you're paying the $115 for wifi and cable.

3. RENT + ELECTRIC: Rent seems like a great price for what you get...until you get the electric bill. There is absolutely no insulation in the townhomes. Our first electric bill in the summer was 320+. We learned some things to do to keep the price down but it is still at least $50-100 above the average in AL. Your only option to keep the price down is to just turn the air conditioner off completely or have it at 80+. Same with heat in the winter.

4. PARKING: There is not nearly enough parking spots for the amount of residents on the street I live on. I mean I park at least 3-4 buildings away from the one I live in. I know that I will survive walking, but I am frustrated because I specifically asked about parking before I moved in and I was told it wasn't an issue. I work normal business hours and the spots are full when I leave in the morning and full when I get home. Residents park in handicap spots, in walkways, on curbs, and they even double park behind other cars. The managers don't really seem to monitor this either. I have never seen anyone with a ticket or towed for parking illegally.

5. RESIDENTS: The residents do not take care of this complex, which isn't the apartment's fault. I have seen residents throw full trash bags out of their car window. On a regular basis I see the people in the same building as me throw water bottles, food wrappers, etc. into the bushes as they are walking to their apartment.
You will also always have the smell of weed in your apartment, at least you will if you live in my building. I know this doesn't bother some people but it gets annoying after a while.
Numerous residents also just leave their trash bags out by their cars which is a problem since we do have raccoons that live with us.

6. ANIMALS: We have had large animals (probably raccoons) living in our ceiling since the day we moved in. You can hear them running around. It is really disgusting. I have reached out to the complex several times, but the last time I did not receive a response.
There is a feral cat problem. I mean they are everywhere. I love cats, so it makes me sad to say this, but the residents have to stop feeding them. It just makes the raccoon problem worse.

7. TRASH: At first I was thankful there was not a valet trash system because between careless residents and raccoons, it would never work. But, the trash compactor is horrendous. It is always overflowing and is just nasty to have to go to.

I don't anticipate any of this changing. I was really excited to move here, especially coming from living downtown, but I have been very disappointed. It seems as if most of the 5 star reviews come from those who have just toured the complex and are mostly talking about the leasing agents.

Also, we did have to deep clean the unit ourselves when we moved in so do expect to have to do that if you choose to live here. I just wanted to share all of the information that I wish I knew 6 months ago!

Blair T.

THE CATS AT INVERNESS!

There is a feral cat problem at the Abbey at Inverness. Currently, there are four breeds and two new litters going into 2024. If you have a dog or car, expect scratches. The cats climb on vehicles, dart across the street, and harass responsible pet owners. Attempts at solving the issue with the Abbey at Inverness management have been unfruitful. They insist that it is the residents' job to solve the feral cat infestation. Local animal controls have stated that “allowing feral cats to breed at the abbey will lead to fleas and are dangerous to children who think they are pets.” I was told the cats are unvaccinated and should not be approached. Problems arise as the cats live on the resident’s stairs. It is a shame that the abbey has allowed the cats to breed excessively, leaving more cats without a home :(. The cats and residents deserve better.

Here are some pictures of the beautiful cats. (There are 8 in that photo, but that is only about a third of the cats. I've counted as many as 20 after a litter. Sadly, many kittens do not survive without proper vaccinations and care.)

Bethany B.

This will be our final year resigning our lease . We've been here since 2018, and every SINGLE YEAR there has been some type of animal .. a racoon ... a possum. . something larger than normal living in our attic. We can here them running above our heads ..especially during the cooler months.. It makes my skin crawl. I've called and complained Every single year and there has been no compensation at all. My kids are freaked out and I am too . Let's not begin to mention that my power bill is sky high. The draft from the balcony always leaves our downstairs freezing and the upstairs smoking hot resulting in the system never resting . I've requested my doors to be sealed and yup... you guessed it . they've been half repaired. The front desk staff are cool..but I'm afraid that won't be enough to save us this time . I'm sick of paying rent here all to recieve animals living in my ceiling.